S05.E15: Possums, Pregnancy and Patriarchy

[CarpeFelis]

On 2/22/2023 at 6:18 PM, greekmom said:

I just don't believe the show went there with Harris.  She is a young woman, with little education, menial job and and now she's decided to have the baby.  I can't believe show went there.

I feel bad for Ben. He doesn't deserve this shit.

Harris having a baby is the worst decision she could have made. All she’s doing is putting more of a burden on the rest of the family. Can’t help thinking she’ll be almost as lousy a mother as her character Debbie on Shameless. And I feel bad for Ben too—where the hell does Darlene get off announcing to him that Harris is moving in, rather than discussing it with him? He should have as much say on that as Darlene does.

ETA: WTF, Becky?! Why encourage her? Yes, you have more energy when you’re younger, but Harris is in no way prepared to be anyone’s parent (no matter what Mark says… getting a sibling out the door to school isn’t the same as being a single parent with no education). You’re also, unless you’re a Conner, probably in a better place to support a child when you’re older.

Edited February 24, 2023 by CarpeFelis
typo

[kitkat343]

6 hours ago, ofmd said:

I thought the writing had improved this season (not to 'really good,' but to 'quite bearable, sometimes even funny.' But now they believe that yet another unplanned baby storyline is a good idea?! Sorry, even if the actress is pregnant, have her sit behind plants or carry big bags, idc. It's almost as if the writers think that each and every poor woman is careless with her sexual health/ contraception. It's also incredibly lazy.

Boy, I'm having a tough week with my tv shows, even the good ones!

 

The actress looked pregnant to me in the show (I'm not certain).  A bag is fine, plus this show has absolutely no concern about continuity.  So far, in the Conner Universe Dan's wife disappears for months at a time on tour, Emilio hasn't been seen since he got remarried, we haven't seen DJ in a while, very little of his daughter, and his wife has been gone forever (in the military but still).   Andy's disappeared.  The fourth Conner baby is at sea or was never born (I can't remember which.  possibly both?)   Dan's stepbrothers appear to have never been born (we saw Crystal with no mention of her children).  

How hard would it have been to send Harris off to college for a semester, or an internship or a job in Chicago?  She was originally from there, and could have some friends who might be willing to help her launch some sort of career.  Given what a pill the character was, I can't imagine anyone would have missed her for a few months.

It was nice to see Jackie try to protect her, but I think that's about all we will get in terms of positive story lines about this mess.   

Edited February 24, 2023 by kitkat343

[Arcadiasw]

6 hours ago, greekmom said:

Wonder if the next storyline will be Ben has a heart attack. 

Remember Dan and Roseanne were the idiots that took that windfall from the cushy government job that Dan had and instead using to pay off the mortgage, sock it away on their 401K, or do something practical, they blew it all on a trip to Disney and took everyone and their mother.  That would have been at least a 50K trip.

I didn't realize until years later it was something from ABC wanting to promote Disney but why couldn't the writers have them win a contest to Disney World instead of making the Conners inept with financial decisions again? 🤦‍♀️

[Your Aunt Tilly]

7 hours ago, greekmom said:

Wonder if the next storyline will be Ben has a heart attack. 

Remember Dan and Roseanne were the idiots that took that windfall from the cushy government job that Dan had and instead using to pay off the mortgage, sock it away on their 401K, or do something practical, they blew it all on a trip to Disney and took everyone and their mother.  That would have been at least a 50K trip.

Funny that you mention that Disney trip, since that’s where Harris was conceived…

[One Tough Cookie]

12 hours ago, greekmom said:

emember Dan and Roseanne were the idiots that took that windfall from the cushy government job that Dan had and instead using to pay off the mortgage, sock it away on their 401K, or do something practical, they blew it all on a trip to Disney and took everyone and their mother.  That would have been at least a 50K trip.

 

they are CONNERS for crying out loud. Fiscal responsibly is not in their DNA

[UYI]

10 hours ago, kitkat343 said:

 The fourth Conner baby is at sea or was never born (I can't remember which.  possibly both?)  

Dan's stepbrothers appear to have never been born (we saw Crystal with no mention of her children).  

 

I think Jerry was officially retconned out of existence for this show (which tbh I don't mind as much, ironic given how often I've bitched about Andy not existing in this universe but there you go), but in the first episode of Roseanne's tenth season, he was living in Alaska on a fishing boat, or something along those lines.

The situation with Dan's half-brother and half-sister (Little Ed and Angela) and Crystal was actually reversed--Crystal DID appear in Roseanne's tenth season, as well as the first episode of this show and I believe a few more episodes later that year as well. And then, late in the second season, Little Ed (but not Angela) was brought back after the death of Ed Sr. (the actor, Ned Beatty, died a year later, but had retired from acting in 2013 and therefore wasn't going to return), and THAT'S when it was suddenly made out to be like he, his sister, and Crystal hadn't been in the Conners' lives, even though the appearances of Crystal shortly before that had indicated the opposite--I can believe that she and Ed Sr. eventually separated (confirming everything Dan warned her about when she married him), but not that she lost contact with Dan & Roseanne (despite Natalie West disappearing over time from the original series).

I can maybe excuse Little Ed not showing up after season two being due to the pandemic starting shortly after that season wrapped up and stories being suddenly changed to reflect that...but it's still a pretty important story and character to drop.

Tying this all back to this week:

After last week's episode, I was starting to have faith that this show was getting back on track--OOPS! -_-

Edited February 24, 2023 by UYI

[StaceyNotStacie]

10 hours ago, kitkat343 said:

Emilio hasn't been seen since he got remarried,

At this point, I’m waiting for Emilio to pick up Beverly Rose when only Ben is around and for him to comment to Emilio that he’s doing everything for Emilio’s kid (including supporting her financially since Becky can’t be bothered to pay rent) and Emilio to decide that she would be better off with him and his new wife, which would undoubtedly cause Becky to think about drinking again because she is overwhelmed about the situation. 

[iMonrey]

The writers seem to think that everyone dumping on Ben is funny. Darlene and Harris sitting there going on about how everyone can take turns with the nightly feedings while Ben sits there looking glum is played for laughs. It speaks to how tone deaf the writers are when it comes to the integrity of their characters. Everyone in this situation looks like an awful, selfish, irresponsible person, and Ben looks like an idiot for taking it. It's not funny, it just ruins all the characters for the sake of a cheap "laugh."

[emmyG]

It's like they're trying to recreate some of the dynamic of Roseanne and Dan with Dan occasionally long-suffering to her whims, but without having bothered to give them a solid relationship foundation first.

Yes, when a couple has been married twenty years and are very deeply connected, you can have them be kind of blunt with each other sometimes because they've known each other so long they don't feel the need to be polite, and there can be humor that comes from their bickering which looks like a fight but actually isn't. You still need to remind the audience (and the characters) how much they love each other sometimes.

Ben and Darlene have been chaos and fighting for most of the show, with several breakups, then suddenly reversing course and getting married, then immediately having worse problems. Why is he putting up with this?

[MrsEVH]

14 hours ago, greekmom said:

Remember Dan and Roseanne were the idiots that took that windfall from the cushy government job that Dan had and instead using to pay off the mortgage, sock it away on their 401K, or do something practical, they blew it all on a trip to Disney and took everyone and their mother.  That would have been at least a 50K trip.

The sad thing is I work with plenty of people who would do the exact same thing if they got a windfall.

[Rocknrollzombie]

2 hours ago, StaceyNotStacie said:

At this point, I’m waiting for Emilio to pick up Beverly Rose when only Ben is around and for him to comment to Emilio that he’s doing everything for Emilio’s kid (including supporting her financially since Becky can’t be bothered to pay rent) and Emilio to decide that she would be better off with him and his new wife, which would undoubtedly cause Becky to think about drinking again because she is overwhelmed about the situation. 

This has given me fuel for the fic, Ben drops Beverly rose off at Emilio with a letter explaining everything Becky has done, including the consolation prize comment. Emilio leaves Becky a text with have some very colorful words in Spanish. Which I will be happy to translate in the notes of the fic. 
 

the freeloaders arrive back to the house, to find Ben and everything that is his gone, Becky gets a message from Emilio that he wants full custody of BR. 
 

Nevellie I can’t really think of how I can have Neville blow up at them again or leave and divorce Jackie. Anybody has an idea I’m open to it. 
 

this fic is going to be some weird type of pleasure to finally unload all my frustrations of the past 5 seasons into these iterations of the characters. 

Edited February 24, 2023 by Rocknrollzombie

[CapeCodLuv]

4 hours ago, iMonrey said:

The writers seem to think that everyone dumping on Ben is funny. Darlene and Harris sitting there going on about how everyone can take turns with the nightly feedings while Ben sits there looking glum is played for laughs. It speaks to how tone deaf the writers are when it comes to the integrity of their characters. Everyone in this situation looks like an awful, selfish, irresponsible person, and Ben looks like an idiot for taking it. It's not funny, it just ruins all the characters for the sake of a cheap "laugh."

Everything I am thinking. They always made poor decisions in the old show, some just to survive. In the new series it seems no one has learned from past mistakes. I get it, they are living just above the poverty level. But not one of them can make a good choice? I suppose Jackie is doing OK although it seems her business teeters on the edge.

If they felt the need to make Harris pregnant then at least show Becky paying rent. It's beyond stupid to think that we would believe she expects to not only pay zero rent, but to have Ben buy her daughter and her friend's school supplies. It's also stupid that they expect us to believe Harris thinks she will have a baby and Ben will get up in the middle of the night to feed it. Not to mention she seems to believe they will clothe and feed it. At lease give us something believable, she is supposed to be an intelligent young woman.  The entire family can't be junk at once, it's just depressing.

I think the worst part for me was the family heading to Dan's for breakfast. It's such a stupid plot line. Louise is on the road so I think Dan lives there alone with Harris. He would have very little food and they do not live next door. What do they do, come over and clean out his eggs, milk and cereal? They know he is poor. So many plot holes.

For me they are making the family unlikable. Dan and Ben need to put their foot down. I don't want them to all of a sudden come into money because as we have seen that was a show killer. But, at least have someone succeed. I hope Darlene's new job is great, Mark gets a scholarship to college, Becky pays rent somehow, Becky shows respect somehow to those that have carried her. They can still have a great show about people living just above the poverty line without making them all such awful individuals.

[peacheslatour]

41 minutes ago, CapeCodLuv said:

Everything I am thinking. They always made poor decisions in the old show, some just to survive. In the new series it seems no one has learned from past mistakes. I get it, they are living just above the poverty level. But not one of them can make a good choice? I suppose Jackie is doing OK although it seems her business teeters on the edge.

If they felt the need to make Harris pregnant then at least show Becky paying rent. It's beyond stupid to think that we would believe she expects to not only pay zero rent, but to have Ben buy her daughter and her friend's school supplies. It's also stupid that they expect us to believe Harris thinks she will have a baby and Ben will get up in the middle of the night to feed it. Not to mention she seems to believe they will clothe and feed it. At lease give us something believable, she is supposed to be an intelligent young woman.  The entire family can't be junk at once, it's just depressing.

I think the worst part for me was the family heading to Dan's for breakfast. It's such a stupid plot line. Louise is on the road so I think Dan lives there alone with Harris. He would have very little food and they do not live next door. What do they do, come over and clean out his eggs, milk and cereal? They know he is poor. So many plot holes.

For me they are making the family unlikable. Dan and Ben need to put their foot down. I don't want them to all of a sudden come into money because as we have seen that was a show killer. But, at least have someone succeed. I hope Darlene's new job is great, Mark gets a scholarship to college, Becky pays rent somehow, Becky shows respect somehow to those that have carried her. They can still have a great show about people living just above the poverty line without making them all such awful individuals.

Well said. I completely agree.

[marceline]

On 2/23/2023 at 1:53 PM, Yogisbooboo64 said:

First of all, she gets pissy when the family has the audacity to be pissed/concerned about her irresponsible dumbass, then she expect everyone to fucking pitch in?!!  She reminds me of that selfish bitch Denise Huxtable-Kendall from The Cosby Show….goes to Africa to ‘work’ then comes home with a husband and annoying stepdaughter and gets upset because Cliff and Clair were rightfully angry at her choices. 

You've been hanging onto this for years and....I completely understand. 😄 I love that you used her full married name. That's how I know that you're hardcore. #Respect

Edited February 24, 2023 by marceline

[ams1001]

58 minutes ago, CapeCodLuv said:

but to have Ben buy her daughter and her friend's school supplies.

And do the project for her!

 

[Lovecat]

I’m calling it right now:  The Conners is going to end with a “reverse Roseanne.”  It’s going to be revealed in the series finale that all these seasons of misery took place in a graphic novel Darlene’s written in the basement; IRL the family gets their shit together after Roseanne’s death and everyone gets a happy ending.

[b4pjoe]

What a depressing shit show this has become. The writers must sit around dreaming up ways to depress their viewers. They succeed each and every week.

[CrystalBlue]

Plus they are probably congratulating themselves for being edgy and relevant with bringing up the abortion issue.  There was a line Harris said about being paranoid that the government was going to spy on her via her period-tracker phone app since the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

[Irate Panda]

I hate these people except for Ben and Jackie (when she’s not insane).  The writers are dreadful.  I at least hope if they insist on this baby for Harris that they keep the dad gone or off screen at least.  I also hope they don’t pull some crazy stunt where Darlene finds out she’s pregnant too so she and Harris are pregnant together.

Normally, I can stand Becky, but I’m tired of her pushing her responsibilities onto Ben.  Darlene as usual is her little bulldozer self making unilateral decisions that affect Ben. I like how she makes the decision of moving Harris and the baby back in when Ben is the only one paying bills, so he’s basically paying for Darlene, Mark, Becky and Beverly Rose, and now Harris and the baby. Oh and apparently supplies for Beverly Rose’s friend 🙄 Did Darlene mention when she is starting this new job?    

Were Jerry and Andy actually retconned or did they just go into witness protection to get away from this family.  I know I would.  Jackie was fairly reasonable in her thought process and advice to Harris.  I love John Goodman, but this version of Dan Conner is extremely depressing. I get he would want to Harris to keep the child, but why can’t somebody on this show not be in the struggle Olympics 🙄  I’m surprised they had Mark say he was still working.  I figured they would have had him laid off for some reason and begging for change on the street or selling a kidney on the black market.

 

[Yogisbooboo64]

9 hours ago, marceline said:

You've been hanging onto this for years and....I completely understand. 😄 I love that you used her full married name. That's how I know that you're hardcore. #Respect

Yup....loathed that entitled character, never understood the hype.

[izabella]

This episode made me very angry at everyone.  At the top of the list is Becky.  Not only is she a freeloader, not only is she dumping her parenting responsibilities on Ben without so much as a thank you, not only is she in over her head as a single mom, now she's encouraging her broke, uneducated, single niece to have a baby because it's better when you're young enough to run around after them?  How the fuck would Becky know?!  She doesn't run around after BR!  Ben does!

Harris, I had some hope you would be smart enough to know better, but it turns out, you, too, are a dumbass, for all the obvious reasons.  My only hope here is the writers want to do a miscarriage story or ectopic pregnancy or something, because the last person who should be having a baby is Harris, except maybe Mark.  When your big dreams for your child are for it to be raised by Ben, there is nowhere to go but into a downward spiral of crappy parenting and neglect. Why are you having it then if you have no plans to take care of the life you are bringing into the world?  I guess Harris wants to make sure Ben is young enough to run around after her child.

And Ben?  There are some words you need to learn!  "No.  NO.  Absolutely not.  Not me.  Not in this lifetime.  That's your responsibility, not mine.  I don't agree.  I won't do it.  Not my problem."  Practice, Ben!  Just say no!

[Shermie]

On 2/22/2023 at 11:54 PM, Bastet said:

In the opening scene, didn't Mark reference waking up at Dan's?  I thought he lived with Darlene and Ben.  Presumably he just slept there, but there was something a little odd about it.

No, he said he woke and there was no food or something, so he figured everyone was as Dan’s Another lame way to get everyone in the same place. Darlene and Ben should have just moved in next door so that constantly being at Dan’s made more sense.

This show. Ugh, not another unplanned pregnancy. Just stop. I know hundreds of women of all ages and I can count on one hand how many had unplanned pregnancies. Such a weak and tired trope.

Agree that Ben should run. Why should he, of all people, be responsible for Beverly Rose?

And why is a kid that young expected to do tie-dye at all, much less as a homework project? Who gives homework to 6 year olds? Isn’t the point of elaborate art projects to have kids learn something new together? Such a weird, weird thing for the writers to choose to saddle Ben with.

So who lives with Dan if everybody seems to be living with Ben and Darlene? At one point it seemed Dan’s house had 5 bedrooms, so surely Becky and Beverly Rose could live there. I don’t remember/understand why/how they ended up living with Darlene.

[KayVeeTeeVee]

On 2/23/2023 at 6:53 PM, ofmd said:

I thought the writing had improved this season (not to 'really good,' but to 'quite bearable, sometimes even funny.' But now they believe that yet another unplanned baby storyline is a good idea?! Sorry, even if the actress is pregnant, have her sit behind plants or carry big bags, idc. It's almost as if the writers think that each and every poor woman is careless with her sexual health/ contraception. It's also incredibly lazy.

Boy, I'm having a tough week with my tv shows, even the good ones!

 

Or have her go live with DJ and his daughter, whom we never see!  Didn't Harris inspire all those pro-female Halloween costumes just a few months ago? Harris - Women's Lib.  Look it up. 

 

[ams1001]

14 hours ago, Irate Panda said:

Did Darlene mention when she is starting this new job?    

The guy interviewing her said the other job opened up 'next month' (or maybe 'in a month'), though I guess we don't know how long it's been since the interview. You'd think Darlene would have mentioned that she'd soon have a real paycheck coming but I guess she doesn't care how stressed out Ben gets (or the episodes are out of order and the interview hadn't happened yet when they filmed it?).

1 hour ago, Shermie said:

And why is a kid that young expected to do tie-dye at all, much less as a homework project? Who gives homework to 6 year olds? Isn’t the point of elaborate art projects to have kids learn something new together? Such a weird, weird thing for the writers to choose to saddle Ben with.

I would think they'd do a project like that at school, where the teacher can set up the dye that everyone can use, and just have each kid bring in a white shirt. (Actually, I wouldn't think a teacher would do a hugely messy project like that with kindergarteners at all.)

When I was in high school I took a class that actually ran a preschool* for part of the year (it was about 15 kids, 4-5 years old, over two consecutive class periods, each with about 15 high school students, all juniors or seniors (you had to be at least a junior to take the class)). We took a class trip to Sesame Place (several of the little ones' parents came also). We had each kid bring in a white t-shirt which we painted with a stencil in our school colors (a teddy bear with our school initials), so everyone would have matching shirts (partly to help keep track of everyone at the park). But we did it during class on a non-preschool day (IIRC, it was only 3 days a week). We didn't expect the kids/parents to paint their own at home.

*I was also in that class when I was four!

Edited February 25, 2023 by ams1001

[Rocknrollzombie]

17 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

I would think they'd do a project like that at school, where the teacher can set up the dye that everyone can use, and just have each kid bring in a white shirt. (Actually, I wouldn't think a teacher would do a hugely messy project like that with kindergarteners at all.)

When I was in high school I took a class that actually ran a preschool* for part of the year (it was about 15 kids, 4-5 years old, over two consecutive class periods, each with about 15 high school students, all juniors or seniors (you had to be at least a junior to take the class)). We took a class trip to Sesame Place (several of the little ones' parents came also). We had each kid bring in a white t-shirt which we painted with a stencil in our school colors (a teddy bear with our school initials), so everyone would have matching shirts (partly to help keep track of everyone at the park). But we did it during class on a non-preschool day (IIRC, it was only 3 days a week). We didn't expect the kids/parents to paint their own at home.

*I was also in that class when I was four!

For kindergarten I remember shaving cream, sand, some other things, the messy projects for me didn’t start until like 2nd grade when I made a papier-mâché piggy bank, or a paper mache flower vase for Mother’s Day.

[ams1001]

9 minutes ago, Rocknrollzombie said:

For kindergarten I remember shaving cream, sand, some other things, the messy projects for me didn’t start until like 2nd grade when I made a papier-mâché piggy bank, or a paper mache flower vase for Mother’s Day.

I think the messiest thing I did at school that young was macaroni, Elmer's glue, and gold paint on cardboard (my mom still has a Christmas tree and a wreath, though one or both might have been my brother's) and paint hand-prints for Mother's Day.

Edited February 25, 2023 by ams1001

[emmyG]

I know we made stuff in kindergarten but we made it in kindergarten, not at home. I think we got ink stamps (made from potatoes, but I don't think we carved the potatoes ourselves) and decorated pillowcases with them.

We didn't do tie-dying until we were 13 (school trip). And most of us couldn't actually manage to do it right even then! The techniques and materials may have changed since I was that age, but getting all the pinching and spinning right and getting the dye in the right place to make interesting patterns was complicated, and then it took hours for the stuff to set. 

Anyway it's not something that really matters, it's just an odd choice. If I were going to come up with a stupid task for them to offload onto Ben, it would have been one of those things where schools sometimes expect parents to create a bunch of stuff on their own time to be brought in for the school to use, like decorations for a class party or food for a bake sale. But again that's based on my school life which was a long time ago.

[ams1001]

24 minutes ago, emmyG said:

Anyway it's not something that really matters, it's just an odd choice. If I were going to come up with a stupid task for them to offload onto Ben, it would have been one of those things where schools sometimes expect parents to create a bunch of stuff on their own time to be brought in for the school to use, like decorations for a class party or food for a bake sale. But again that's based on my school life which was a long time ago.

Having him chasing down nut/peanut/gluten-free cookies might have been more realistic...

I did giggle at Dan's Smurf joke, at least.

[pinkandsparkly13]

4 hours ago, Shermie said:

who lives with Dan if everybody seems to be living with Ben and Darlene? At one point it seemed Dan’s house had 5 bedrooms, so surely Becky and Beverly Rose could live there. I don’t remember/understand why/how they ended up living with Darlene

It's Dan, Louise, and Harris at the Conner house. That house has 3 bedrooms and the basement which was made into a room for Becky and Beverly Rose. Darlene was looking for a house for awhile, and Becky planned on living with her. This was before she and Ben got back together. Harris just decided she wanted to stay at Dan's.

[Bastet]

At Dan's house, there's the main bedroom, the basement, and two bedrooms upstairs.  But when everyone but Harris moved out, Dan turned the basement into his weed garden and Louise turned the second upstairs bedroom (D.J.'s childhood bedroom, that Darlene and then Darlene and Ben had been living in) into her music room.

I have no idea how many bedrooms there are supposed to be at Darlene and Ben's -- not many, clearly, since Becky and Beverly Rose share.  Which means presumably three -- Darlene and Ben's, Becky and Beverly Rose's, and Mark's.  So if Harris moves in once she has the baby, it would seem Becky and Beverly Rose would need to go back to Dan's -- either into Harris's former room (which was Becky and Darlene's back in the day) or back into the basement Dan fixed up for the two of them if he moves his stash -- because otherwise poor Mark would have to not only share with his sister again, but with a baby.  Unless he goes off to college (is this is senior year, or does he have one more to go?), but with their big plan for that being a contrabassoon scholarship, he seems destined for community college, at least at first.

[Wizardpatch]

On 2/23/2023 at 12:10 PM, emmyG said:

Whatever happened to the Dan who was quietly angry and depressed about Darlene throwing her future away, even when she was far better situated to take care of a baby than Harris? (Darlene's sudden excitement about motherhood was totally out of left field, but at least she had a plan. And a partner, before they retconned him into a deadbeat.)

The difference is that 80s and 90s Dan at least held out the hope that one of his daughters would reach middle class status. 2020s Dan has realized that is never going to happen so they might as well have a big family.

[StaceyNotStacie]

26 minutes ago, Wizardpatch said:

The difference is that 80s and 90s Dan at least held out the hope that one of his daughters would reach middle class status. 2020s Dan has realized that is never going to happen so they might as well have a big family.

I’m thinking that at his age, he figures he might not get to see another great grandchild, so it’s something to look forward to and is treating it as good news instead of bad news. 
 

Am I the only one shocked that Lanford  has both a Whole Foods and a Trader Joe’s (isn’t that where David was working in the reboot season)?

[Rocknrollzombie]

my own father is a great grandfather times 5, my youngest niece is 22 has two kids, my dad knows she can’t take care of them because she is always bringing them and taking them to and from Mexico.

So my sister was taking care of them, my niece wanted my parents (they are up in age around their 70s)to watch her kids (which they did for a week)while she worked which she would do but after she would go and get plastered. All of my family members know she isn’t fit to be a mother. But the kids are here already in pre-k or what not and we all tell her to get her shit together because we are not her daycare, her personal storage unit.

 

I would have expected dan reaction to be more like that.

Edited February 26, 2023 by Rocknrollzombie

[So unbelievable]

At this point, I hate watch this show.  The whole pregnancy story is lazy writing, as said above.   So many of my friends, myself included, had to take loans for school.  That covered books.  Becky is an entitled dumbass.  Harris will be the same.  Just rinse and repeat with the baby storyline from Becky and use for Harris.  Have the kid, complain how hard it is, don't do anything to better yourself and on and on and on.  

[ButterQueen]

I actually didn’t mind this episode.  We barely see Beverly Rose, so I doubt we’ll see Harris’s baby much.  The Conners have a history of caring for each other, so I expected nothing different from their response.  Darlene will be getting a regular paycheck soon, so that will help. I cannot stand Harris as a character, so I am not looking forward to any extra screen time.  

I am also not bothered one bit about the characters that have disappeared from the original show.  I just wish we could have more Louise.  

This family has always had financial troubles, but they seem to love each other.  It’s a reality situation for many, many families.  I was happy to see Darlene support Harris.

I love this show and it’s realism at heart.
 

 

 

 

 

[Linderhill]

On 2/24/2023 at 10:57 PM, CrystalBlue said:

There was a line Harris said about being paranoid that the government was going to spy on her via her period-tracker phone app since the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

That was ridiculous, before there were phone app we just used paper calendars and a pen or pencil.  No chance of gov't spying with that.  Not very difficult either.  Women were able to track their cycles generations before there were phone apps.

[kassa]

On 2/23/2023 at 7:06 PM, ofmd said:

I think I'm done. Abbott Elementary and Frasier rewatches will have to do for my comedy needs.

They've rebooted Frasier - no Niles, so be forewarned. 

I get the whole rally 'round the expectant mother thing. Really... what can you say? If you believe and respect that it's a choice, you can't badger a woman into not making a bad one. What you CAN do is lay down ground rules - if you expect this family to help you raise this child, there's going to be a committee giving input. A discussion that includes Ben and Becky.  The family unit can work together to move everybody forward, but it can't be play it by ear day to day, and the heaviest weight can't fall on the people who aren't the parents of the child. They need a plan for the year, for the month, for the week. What needs to be done, who's available to do it. 

I'd move Mark and Harris (until she has the baby) in with Dan and his wife who's barely ever there anyway. That way the older folks only get stuck with the least intrusive family members (and Dan's been lonely anyway).  When the baby's born, Harris and baby go to Darlene and Beverly Rose and Becky move back with Dan with strict house rules about living separate lives and no child care unless it's pre-arranged or a true emergency.

I feel bad for Ben, but he's got to speak up, and in this family that means yell until you're heard. 

15 hours ago, Linderhill said:

That was ridiculous, before there were phone app we just used paper calendars and a pen or pencil.  No chance of gov't spying with that.  Not very difficult either.  Women were able to track their cycles generations before there were phone apps.

But for a kid who never did that before, you can see how it could be something that slipped through the cracks when it was previously automated. 

[MissLucas]

1 hour ago, kassa said:

But for a kid who never did that before, you can see how it could be something that slipped through the cracks when it was previously automated. 

Harris is supposed to be an artsy type (at least I hope so for the folks she's tattooing), she could very well be into bullet journaling and I've seen plenty of setups on YT that included menstruation trackers. Obviously that's a mute point because the main reason this is happened is lazy writing.

[ItsHelloPattiagain]

So it must have been fun for Harris to hear how awful it was for Darlene after she was born. Nothing says "Hey, I love you" like hearing about how you've messed up your mother's life.  That's some straight up Bev stuff.  I really really really dislike Darlene. She has none of the humor and likeability Roseanne had.  

When did Jackie supposedly have an abortion? Could that have been Little Andy? LOL. Did she pull a "Bobby Ewing in the shower" deal? 

The event that shall be known as Bashing of the Men has begun.  I remember when the OG Roseanne show started and Dan and other males on the show were at least shown as lovable men (even with their faults).  After several seasons, it devolved into "Men are Dumb" show, where Dan was shamed and put down (and not in a jovial way) and of course, OG Mark turned from a tough punk with awesome mechanical skills to a total idiot.  Now it's already happening with Ben.  He needs to say NOOOOOO! in a loud and angry voice at these women who think he's their personal doormat. 

[tribeca]

Harris asked everyone their opinions but what was hers.  What lead her to make the choice she did?  I really don’t think she just made the opposite choice of Darlene.  
Darlene is very unlikeable.  Wonder if Ben feels he made a mistake getting married.  He sure inherited a lot. 
  Dan gave 15 percent off at the hardware store.  Is he partners with Ben ?  

[ams1001]

32 minutes ago, tribeca said:

  Dan gave 15 percent off at the hardware store.  Is he partners with Ben ?  

I think he has a 10% stake or something like that.

[QQQQ]

Wouldn't Becky be going to school for (pretty close to) free? Her EFC would probably be 0.

[UYI]

On 2/25/2023 at 7:29 PM, StaceyNotStacie said:

Am I the only one shocked that Lanford  has both a Whole Foods and a Trader Joe’s (isn’t that where David was working in the reboot season)?

They shouldn't even have a Target, let alone a Whole Foods and a Trader Joe's. 

[kassa]

16 hours ago, ItsHelloPattiagain said:

When did Jackie supposedly have an abortion? Could that have been Little Andy? LOL. Did she pull a "Bobby Ewing in the shower" deal? 

I immediately flashed to Fisher and how much worse that situation would have been had she been pregnant. And who's to say she wasn't? Would add layers to one of the best (and best acted) storylines of the franchise. Heartbreaking.

 

[StaceyNotStacie]

1 hour ago, kassa said:

I immediately flashed to Fisher and how much worse that situation would have been had she been pregnant. And who's to say she wasn't? Would add layers to one of the best (and best acted) storylines of the franchise. Heartbreaking.

 

I didn’t even think about Fisher. I assumed she got pregnant as a teen or early 20s. 

[emmyG]

1 hour ago, StaceyNotStacie said:

I didn’t even think about Fisher. I assumed she got pregnant as a teen or early 20s. 

This is correct, she said it was when she was Harris' age. Although they never dared actually say the word abortion. (Not that this stopped Fox from freaking out and printing articles about how dare the show even consider abortion an option.)

[kassa]

Ah, I missed the Harris' age part. 

Now I'm thinking of her line in the discussion with Fred about numbers "well, slept with..."

[Lukeysboat]

On 2/27/2023 at 1:37 PM, kassa said:

I’d move Mark and Harris (until she has the baby) in with Dan and his wife who's barely ever there anyway

Mark is a minor who should be living with at least one of his parents. 

[Wizardpatch]

16 hours ago, Lukeysboat said:

Mark is a minor who should be living with at least one of his parents. 

Normally I would agree but have you seen Darlene interact with her son more than twice a season? He seems closer to Dan.

[Rocknrollzombie]

6 hours ago, Wizardpatch said:

Normally I would agree but have you seen Darlene interact with her son more than twice a season? He seems closer to Dan.

Can forget Dan seems to be just focused on one grandchild sometimes which is BR.

Mark can do what his Uncle (in og Mark’s case his crazy bipolar mom kicked him out) did live on his own away from his dysfunctional family in an apartment  I’m surprised Mark hasn’t thought of getting emancipated.

Edited March 1, 2023 by Rocknrollzombie